The Ruler Cult and Imperial Cult

The ruler cult, which eventually developed into the imperial cult, represents an amalgam of Greek and Eastern influences. These cults established temples and included rituals, prayer, and sacrifice. While the deification of rulers was an established practice in the ancient Near East (e.g., Egypt and the pharaohs), Greek precedent came from the hero cult of the deified Herakles (Ἡρακλῆς, Hēraklēs). Alexander made use of this practice by letting conquered cities and nations ascribe him divine honors. The Seleucid and Ptolemaic rulers amplified this practice (Bunge, “Antiochos-Helios,” 164–88; Johnson, “Ptolemies,” 50–6). The practice spread westward after Roman conquest but stayed especially popular in Anatolia. It included the worship and deification of the emperor and of Rome as the goddess Roma (Beard, et all, Religions of Rome, 140–8, 348–63; Long, “God-like”).